Sunlight shown through huge windows in the morning, glinting off of shiny buildings in Asgard, and reflected onto the bed and face of a small boy. His hair was raven black, there were light freckles dancing over his nose, and his eyes were squeezed shut, hoping desperately to fall asleep for a few more hours.

The boy knew his chances were shot when heavy footsteps echoed down the hallway outside his room. In seconds, there was weight bouncing up and down on his bed, and he groaned in annoyance.

"Wake up, brother! It's a new day, and they've already set out breakfast!" A young, booming voice frazzled his thoughts, and he let his blue-green eyes crack open. Slowly, he rubbed them.

"Thor, do you mind at all?" He asked. Would he ever be able to sleep in?

"Brother, please?" Thor landed on his stomach with a plop, promptly pulling the blankets away from the boy's face. He rolled his eyes and sat up.

"What do you want to do?"

"Hogun, Fandral, and Volstagg wish to play!" Thor exclaims, sliding off the bed.

"Really?" The boy raises his eyebrows. Thor's friends never want to play with him, they always hide when he appears. But on the rare occasion that they do, he's often stuck being the frost giant.

"Come out of bed, Loki!" Thor pulls on his arm. Loki jumps out of bed and lands on his two feet, excited at the prospect of actually having playmates.

The two small boys sprint through the hallway, giggling.

Halfway down the stairs, Loki is caught by two hands, under the armpits, and he squeals in surprise.

"Loki, you must get dressed before you play." A woman's voice commands in his ear.

"Mother." He whines, finally noticing his dark green pajamas. She smiles, pulling his shirt over his head. She replaces it with a white tunic and soft green vest, then hands him his belt and black pants. He quickly changes into them, then scrambles down the steps after his brother.

"Have fun!" His mother calls after him. He runs down the hall until he can hear voices, then stops.

Thor and his friends stand in a circle, and upon his entrance, they all turn to stare at him. Loki smiles hopefully, wishing they'd finally accept him. He'd never had friends before, but he'd always dreamed of it. The boys don't utter a word, just stare at him. Thor sends him a reassuring look, knowing of the troubles his brother had possessed.

"What did you want to play?" Loki finally questions, pushing through his nerves. He just wanted to get everything right.

"We don't want to play with you." Volstagg answers. There's a grease stain on his shirt, and breakfast on his cheek. Yet, he still startles Loki, and something in his stomach unfurls.

"W-what?" He stutters quietly, unsure of what he'd just heard.

"You are too weird. You would rather play with magic than fight like a real warrior." Fandral cocks his head to the side, showing no emotion. Simultaneously, the three boys turn away and run off, while Thor stands for an extra second. He shrugs, as if to say he's sorry, and he's right behind them.

Loki watches them run, without him, until they're no longer visible. Then he collapses on the ground, putting his head in his hands, as self-pitying sobs wrack through his tiny body.

What was wrong with him? All he'd wanted was companions. He'd grown sick of reading books. He read of fictional characters and their friends, and he'd longed to know someone had cared for him as they had each other.

"Loki?" His mother is near. Loki rubs his eyes and sits up, hoping she wouldn't notice his reddened eyes.

"What is the matter?" She helps him up, looking down at him with worry.

"They won't play with me." He sniffles. She purses her lips and hugs him to her. Deep down, Frigga had known of his differences to the other children, and was scared for her son's well-being.

"Would you like to take a walk?" She raises her eyebrows. He wipes his nose and nods, then lets go of her waist. He clasps his pale fingers in hers, and together they walk away from the scene.

For over ten minutes, they walk in silence, Loki occasionally tripping or taking an extra long time to climb stairs because of his small legs. Finally, they stop at one of the palace's many balconies, this one with several blooms of flowers.

"You like these flowers, do you not?" Frigga gazes out over Asgard. She turns her head to see her son nodding, studying the leaves and colored petals closely.

"Mother?" He meets her eyes, his blue-green and wide, full of wonder.

"Yes, Loki?" She tucks a stray piece of his black hair behind his ear, a warm smile taking over her face.

"Why is this one different than the others?" His thin, nimble finger touches a little white rose lightly. It is surrounded by many other roses, but the rest are red and pink.

"It's special." She decides.

"How? What makes it special?" The little boy couldn't wrap his head around this. What makes anything special? Why wasn't he special?

She is silent for several moments, and he begins to think that she hadn't heard him. He looks away, his eye catching a group of children tossing a ball around, laughing. His eyes shine with envy.

"Do you see all of these other roses?" She finally asks. He nods.

"Those are all the little girls and boys you wish to play with." He frowns. "But this one," she taps the little white bloom, "is just for you."

"What do you mean?"

"Somewhere out there, Loki, is a little white flower. Delicate, beautiful, and made for you. Just for you. But you must be patient, or you will never find it." She caresses his face.

"This little flower is out there somewhere, Loki, I promise." She gently picks the flower, and tucks it behind his hear. Warmness and joy shine in his eyes, and he smiles the biggest smile that has ever taken over his face.

"Thank you, mother." He says quietly. He'd never loved someone so much as he did her at that moment.

"Now, let's get some food, shall we?" She stands, taking his arm. Together, the disappear through the door.

-

Was it good?

I hope you liked it!

Anyone who's reading this, please let me know? I'd really appreciate it:)

By the way, baby Loki feels! I just love baby Loki, and even baby Thor. They're the cutest.

I'm so excited for this story:)

I hope you like it so far!

-k xxx